Vertical walls constructed of uprights and detachable panels and structures comprising them



Filed o ct.'1 1, 1966 June 10, 1969 H. J. E. APESTEGUY 3.

VERTICAL WALLS CQNSTRUCTED OF UPRIGHTS AND DBTACHABLE PANELS AND STRUCTURES COMPRISING THEM I Sheet of 3 I H. JQE. APESTEGUY BLE STRUCTED OF UPRIGHTS AND DETACHA PANELS AND STRUCTURES COMPRISING THEM Sheet Fig.3'

Fig.4

June 6 H. J. E. APESTEGUY 3,443,554

VERTICAL WALLS GONSTRUCTED OF UPRIGH'IS AND DETACHABLE PANELS AND STRUCTURES COMPRISING THEM Filed on. 11, 1966 Sheet 3 of 3 United States Patent U.S. Cl. 52-461 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A wall structure formed of sheet material panels having folded vertical edges with an upright member enclosing and engaging the folded edges to tie side edges of the panels to each other. A wedge enclosed within the upright member abuts the inner surface of the upright member and urges the folded edges of the panels into interlocking engagement with the upright member.

The present invention relates to vertical walls contruct ed of uprights and detachable panels and to structures comprising them particularly grain silos and barns.

In known walls the panels, usually square in shape, are fixed to each other and to the uprights by bolts which necessitates the boring of numerous holes, resulting in a high manufacturing cost, risk of faulty waterproofing and difficulties in assembly caused by faulty alignment of the holes. In addition, the assembly of such a wall is timeconsuming and costly.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved vertical wall which overcomes these drawbacks.

According to the present invention there is provided an improved vertical wall constructed of uprights and detachable panels, wherein two opposite edges of each panel are folded to define grooves, the uprights are constituted by open section members with wings bent towards each other, said wings of the uprights thread into said groove and a wedge member is enclosed by sliding into each of said uprights, said wedge members bearing, on one hand, against the inner face of the enclosing upright and, on the other hand, against said folded edges.

Such a well can therefore be put rapidly together, without bolts or other attachments, dismounted in the same manner and its constituent elements are simple and cheap in manufacture.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention the wedge member has a cross-section in the form of a wedge, the base of which bears against the inside face of the section member whilst its inclined sides are in contact with said folded edges in the space between the wings of the section member.

In the particular case of a wall which must have at least one angle (convex or concave) the wings of the angle iron form an angle with each other.

A convenient embodiment of this keying member is to constitute it of sheet metal bent in V form.

Also and particularly in this latter case sufficient play is advantageously arranged between the grooves and the wings which they enclose so that they fit together enabling the angle formed between the panel and the wing enclosed in its groove to be varied by more or less 10 degrees.

Moreover, by giving the angle formed between the wings a value of about 140 degrees, it is possible with the same elements to form walls whose angles convex or concave are those of polygons having from 6 to 24 sides or all angles included by these extremes. This characteristic is 3,448,554 Patented June 10, 1969 ice particularly interesting in the formation of polygon walls defining an enclosed space.

In the case of a polygon wall defining an enclosed area the uprights are preferably on the outside of the enclosure.

The edges of the panels other than those carrying grooves, are provided, on the opposite side to that on which the grooves are located, with stiffening elements preferably constituted by a tubular structure, advantageously of triangular cross-section. Such a tubular structure is easily obtained by bending sheet metal along two parallel lines at unequal distances from the edge.

In an improved embodiment intended to render the wall more resistant to transverse stresses, on whatever side of the wall the stresses are exerted, and to obtain this increase of strength without increasing the weight of the construction, even reducing the latter the Wedge member has lateral wings at its base, bent back in such a manner that they are directed towards the wings of the upright and act as abutments against enlarged portions arranged at the ends of the folded edges of the panels and located in a space between the lateral wall of the upright and said wings of the wedge member.

This arrangement has the great advantage of preventing the folded edges of the panels getting out of shape through the unrolling of the sheet-metal by the sliding of the same between the wedge member and the wings of the upright, under the effect of the transverse stresses on the Wall, and consequently of preventing the latter from buckling and finally tearing away from the upright.

Due to the above described arrangement, the transverse stresses on the panels are translated into a traction exerted by the grooves on the wings of the upright which tend to open the latter. It is therefore particularly advantageous that the said enlarged portions be in the form of a wedge as the traction force on the uprights is translated by a force of the thrust of the wedge member against the face of the panel in contact with its base, i.e. a contrary force to the one tending to open the panel. In other words the tractive force of the panels on the uprights is transformed into two opposed forces which tend to balance one another.

A consequence of the aforesaid improvements is that for an equal strength the dimension and the weight of the uprights can be reduced. This advantage might be limited by the requirements of flame-resistance.

In order to derive full benefit another improvement is constituted by the presence of plates which fit closely the outer contour of the cross-section of the upright. The plate prevents the deformation of the cross-section of the upright and thus increases its fire resistance. On the other hand, it distributes over the two lower panels the load supported by each upper panel, instead of allowing this weight to rest on the only panel immediately underneath it. There is thus achieved a better distribution and equalisation of the loads and the risk of local overloading is reduced. The plate prevents the deformation of the cross-section of the upright through stresses which would tend to close the section member.

In accordance with another improvement the length of the wedge is substantially equal to the height of a panel and the plates rests on the wedge member located immediately below. Thus a kind of auxiliary upright which transmits directly on the ground the weight of the panels and the vertical components of the forces exerted on them, is formed inside the upright by simple alternate superposition of wedge members and plates.

In order to improve the seating of the wedge member on the underlying plate, the contour of the central hole of the plate has at its center a projection towards the inside and which is interposed between the two Wings turned toward each other of the section member constituting the upright. This inner projection of the contour of the central hole of the plate extends between the wings of the angle-iron and opposes the closing of the latter under the effect of stresses.

Finally, another feature of the invention is that there is a fitting of the lower border of each panel in the upper border of the panel placed immediately under it. The result is that the transverse forces on the wall which are exerted on the lower part of each panel are redistributed to the upper part of the panel situated below.

In a particular embodiment of this fitting, the panels which have their upper edge bordered by a tubular structure of triangular cross-section formed on one face f the panel by folding of the sheet-metal, the lower edge of each panel is bent against this same face of the panel then bent outwards, thus constituting a kind of gutter of triangular cross-section open towards the bottom and designed to cover the said tubular structure.

It will be apparent that the elements and members used in the present invention may be of any suitably rigid materials which can be formed into the required shapes by various processes. They may advantageously be made of sheet metal such as sheet iron.

In order that the invention may be more clearly understood, several embodiments thereof will now be described, purely by way of non-limiting examples, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 shows, for part of one embodiment of a wall according to the invention, the assembly of the panels on the upright, the latter being shown in crosssection seen in perspective;

FIGURE 2 shows in plan view a polygonal wall, defining an embodiment of an enclosure forming a grain silo, according to the invention;

FIGURE 3 shows a vertical view in perspective of a part of another embodiment of a wall according to the invention;

FIGURE 4 shows in perspective a sectional view along the line shown IVIV on FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5 shows in elevation the face of the wall opposite to that shown in FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 6 shows in plan a plate enclosing the uprights;

FIGURE 7 is an enlarged horizontal cross-section of FIGURE 4.

Referring now to the drawings, in FIGURE 1 is shown assembled a vertical upright at an angle of a polygonal Wall.

The upright 1 is constituted by an open angle-iron, approximately in the form of a C and which has two wings 2, directed towards the inside of the section member forming between them an angle of the order of 140. The panels 4 are made of sheets of sheet-metal cut at the four corners and with the edges suitably bent. Along the edges intended to occupy a vertical position in the wall or vertical edges, run over the whole of their height grooves 6 which are formed by folding the sheetmetal; the upper and lower extremities of the panels 4 are edged with stiflfening elements 7 each constituted by a tubular structure, with a triangular cross-section, obtained by folding the sheet-metal around two horizontal lines unequally spaced from the border or edge of the sheetmetal, and the folding is done in such a way that this edge touches the flat face of the sheet-metal on the side opposite to that where the grooves 6 are located. In the latter the wings 2 are fitted and the whole is locked by the wedge member 8, with a transverse section in form of a wedge constituted by sheet-metal folded in a V-shape.

This wedge member 8 bears on its base against the inside face of the upright member 1 and it has its point engaged in the space between the wings 2 in such amanner that its lateral faces bear on the back of the folded edges 6.

The assembly is of the most simple kind. The grooves 6 of panels 4 are threaded on to wings 2 of a member 1, laid flat on the ground, then the assembly is erected vertically. The grooves without members fitted in place are then threaded from top to bottom, fitted with two new members 1, then the corresponding wedge members, and this procedure continues in the same manner from one to the next. When the thus erected wall is that of an enclosed space (FIGURE 2) the placing of the last span renders the whole assembly rigid.

According to the value chosen for the angle which is formed by the wings 2 and the play (1-10") left between the wings and the grooves 6, the wall thus constituted can be a polygonal wall, having angles between the values of angles at the apices of regular polygons with 6 and 24 sides. Besides, the uprights 1 are placed on the outside of the polygon wall. Of course, other values may be chosen for the angle formed by the wings 2 with each other, for example or again in which case the wall is substantially rectilinear especially if only a reduced play is arranged between the grooves 6 and the wings 2.

By directing wings 2 no longer towards the inside of the member 1 but towards the outside, the upright is located on the concave side of the wall, therefore, in the case of the wall forming a closed enclosure, inside this enclosure.

FIGURE 2 shows a wall constituted as described above and forming an enclosure in the shape of a regular olygon, in the case of an octogon. This enclosure once it is covered with a roof and equipped with the usual accessories such as inspection door, emptying door, ventilation ducts etc., can constitute an excellent grain silo for small and medium installations.

-As is seen in FIGURE 3 the general structure of the wall is the same as the one described previously, referring to FIGURES 1 and 2 and designated by the same reference numbers with the addition of the index b. Vertical metallic members 1b constitute the uprights with a section approximately in the form of a C with wings 2b directed towards the inside of the section member, the sheet-metal panels 4b, with vertical edges folded on one side, to form grooves 6b fitting on the wings 2b of the vertical section members 1b and horizontal edges 7b folded on the other side of the panel and finally the wedge members 812 with a section in form of a corner wedge, are fitted lengthwise into the uprights 1b to hold the folded edges 6b of the panels on the wings 2b of the uprights.

Differing from the wall previously described, the length of the wedge members 8b, is no longer equal to the total height of the wall but only to that of a panel. Each wedge member rests with its lower end on a plate 12 (FIGURE 6) having an opening following the external shape of the section of the uprights, in order to be slid on to the uprights and fit it exactly. Each plate 12 rests on the upper edge of the wedge trnember 8b placed immediately underneath them (FIGURE 5) and is engaged in one of the slots provided in each of the upper corners of the top edge of panel 4b situated immediately below it (FIGURE 5) so that these plates cooperate to prevent the panels being displaced transversally on the uprights. Each plate 12 serves as a support to the edges of the two panels immediately above it and which extend on both sides of the uprights on which the plate is mounted. The weight of these panels is thus directly supported by the plate and transferred through it on to the wedge member located immediately below it and so on from one to the other to the base of the upright. Although no longer standing vertically one upon the other, the panels are nevertheless fitted into each other; the lower edge of each being bordered by a kind of gutter 7b of V-shape whose opening faces the base and which covers a surface 7c inclined towards the base along the upper edge of each panel. In the case where the wall is that of a silo the inclination of this wall 70 and the wing of the gutter which covers it, is at least equal to the angle of slope of the material to be stored in the silo, and preferably greater, in order to avoid any accumulation of material on the gutters 7b and the overloading which would result from it. The gutters 7b and panels 70 in addition assist in stiffening the panels. They are preferably closed as shown by the folding of the sheet-metal itself of the panels. For the gutters 7b, the sheet-metal is first of all folded on itself, at 180, then bent in the opposite direction at an angle of more than 90. The wall 70 is itself obtained by the folding of the sheet-metal at an angle equal to the preceding one, and folding of its edge towards the panel.

The member 8b with a section in formof a wedge has at its base lateral wings 13 whose ends are turned back outwardly towards the apex of the wedge and which act as abutments for the projecting parts 14, which are arranged at the edges of the lateral grooves 6b of the panels and which are located in a specially designed space between the lateral wall of the upright 1b and the said wings 13. The folded edges 6b are thus anchored in the upright and cannot escape from the latter in the case of heavy transverse pressures on the panels 4b, which otherwise would result in causing the grooves to disappear through sliding and unrolling of the sheet-metal on the edge of the upright.

To increase this effect of anchorage these projections 14 are preferably wedge-shaped, widening as they go further from the centre of the upright. This "corner shape gives therefore to the projections the advantage of exerting on the main face of the upright a reaction which urges it against the ties and prevents bulging inwards under the effect of the said pressures.

Any inward bulge of this main face of the upright is counterbalanced by a projection 15 which each plate 12 (FIGURE 6) has at the middle of its central opening and which extends to the inside of the upright 1b between the wings 2b up to the immediate vicinity of this main face of the upright. This projection 15 also opposes any stress which tends to close the upright through the converging of the wings 2b.

The combination of these features results in considerably increased resistance to deformations of all kinds, which allows a lightening of the whole wall and a reduction in its cost.

Walls according to the invention may also be profitably used to constitute walls for dismountable sheds for building yards or any other uses and for small garden houses.

What I claim is:

1. A vertical wall construction comprising, uprights and wall panels, each panel having vertical edges folded to define grooves and the uprights having wings bent towards each other and slidable into said grooves, wedge members slidingly enclosed within said uprights and bearing against the inner face of the enclosing upright and against said folded edges, said wedge member being wedge-shaped cross-section whose base bears against the central portion of the inner face of the upright with its inclined sides engaging said folded edges, said 'wedge member having lateral wings at its base whereby a space is provided inside the upright between the wall thereof and each wing of the wedge member, said folded edges respectively extending into said spaces, and enlarged parts at an edge of each folded edge abuting against said wedge and the upright wings.

2. A wall construction as in claim 1, wherein said enlarge-d part is in the shape of a wedge engaged between a wing of the upright and the wing of said wedge member.

3. A wall construction as in claim 1, wherein the enlarged part is formed by said folded edge bent twice angularly to provide along said edge an elongated hollow wedge-shaped structure.

4. A wall construction as in claim 1 including vertically superposed panels formed of sheet metal each having its lower edge portion folded back against theface of the panel and then bent outwards forming a gutter of triangular cross-section open at the bottom and its upper edge part bent outwards in parallel disposition to lower edge portion.

5. A vertical wall construction comprising, uprights and a plurality of horizontal rows of vertically superposed panels detachably carried by said uprights, each panel having vertical edges folded to define grooves and the uprights being constituted by open channel members having wings bent towards each other and slidable into said grooves, wedge members slidably enclosed in the channel of said uprights and each of which bears against the inner face of the enclosing upright and against said folded edges, plates each having a central opening corresponding to the outer shape of the upright, said plates being adapted to slide along the uprights and adapted to be interposed between the upper edge of two panels fitted to the same upright and the lower edge of the two panels located immediately above.

6. A wall construction as in claim 5, wherein a projection is provided on each plate within the opening thereof directed towards the interior of the channel member.

7. A wall construction as in claim 5, wherein the wedge member inside an upright comprises a plurality of vertically superposed sections each having a height less than that of the upright and substantially equal to that of a panel, each wedge member being superposed onto a lower one rests on the plate located between two vertically superposed row of panels which rests on the 'Wedge member section located immediately below.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 497,718 5/1893 Gross 525 29 874,069 12/ 1907 Hester 52464 1,156,443 10/1915 Stevens 52282 1,468,100 9/1923 Baldwin 522'82 1,757,664 5/ 1930 Gohmann 52282 1,897,776 2/ 1933 Venzie 52466 2,028,607 1/1936- Holt 52529 2,742,116 4/ 1956 Fitzgerald 525 88 2,822,898 2/ 1958 Richards 52464 3,293,819 12/1966 Heirich 52588 3,325,952 6/1967 Trachtenberg 52530 HENRY C. SUTHERLAND, Primary Examiner.

JAMES L. RIDGILL, 111., Assistant Examiner.

, US. Cl. X.R. 

